The present invention relates to liners for infant car seats and more specifically to limited life or disposable liners for use with infant car seats of a variety of different sizes and shapes.
Infant car seats are required in many states and are used by many parents. These seats are designed to protect the infant by reducing the possibility of injury in the event of a traffic accident. The infant car seats are provided with a structure which enables the infant seat to be affixed to the seat of a vehicle. Straps, which can be fastened around the infant, are provided to retain the infant in the infant seat.
Infant seats are subject to spills of food, beverages and to otherwise being soiled. The infant seats can be difficult to clean and keep sanitary. Also, infant seat straps typically pass through slots in the seat which are particularly difficult to clean.
The seats are commonly of a cloth material which is difficult to clean or of plastic or vinyl which is somewhat easier to clean. However, plastic or vinyl infant seats tend to be uncomfortable, particularly to the sensitive skin of an infant. When exposed to direct sunlight in the summer, such materials tend to become extremely hot and sticky. In the winter, plastic and vinyl materials become uncomfortably cold. Moreover, plastic and vinyl infant seats are not soft to the touch and typically cannot be removed for washing.
It has been proposed to use liners for infant car seats. A typical liner is of a multi-piece cloth construction with a pocket for receiving the upper end of an infant car seat. Cloth liners of this type are often held in place by ties and include strap receiving slots through which the infant seat straps are threaded or positioned when the liners are in place.
Although cloth liners can be removed and washed, this requires some effort, particularly when straps need to be threaded through slots in the liners for removal and replacement. Consequently, there is a tendency for users to leave the liners in place even when somewhat soiled. In addition, unless an individual has a spare cloth liner, the infant seat is used without a liner until the washing is complete. Known cloth liners are frequently sewn so that they are relatively time consuming and labor intensive to produce. Fuller et al. U.S. Design Pat. Nos. 257,084, 257,085, and 257,086; Schutz U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,453; Reece U.S. Design Pat. No. 283,475; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,188,065 of Meeker are examples of this type of liner.
In addition, U.S. Design Pat. No. 266,802 of Gooding (FIG. 4 of the Gooding patent) appears to show a plastic or vinyl infant car seat liner of stacked or laminated components which provide raised cushioning sections. The Gooding design would suffer from many of the drawbacks mentioned above in connection with plastic or vinyl infant seats.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,004 of Madsen describes a disposable car seat liner as including a disposable diaper type liquid absorbent material, such as cotton batting, on a water repellant backing material, such as vinyl, and a permeable facing which holds the absorbent material in place on the backing. Paper facing or a cotton polyester blend fabric material is described as being a suitable facing. In Madsen, a pair of L-shaped sides are described as being adapted for attachment to a body, for example, by stitching or sewing. The upper shoulder straps of the infant seat shown in Madsen pass above the level of the liner. Thus, the Madsen design illustrates a multi-piece liner that would not provide any protection for an infant's neck and head.
Another prior art infant car seat liner is shown in FIG. 1. This illustrated liner is of cloth and has the same cleaning problems and drawbacks as the previously described cloth liners. For example, such a liner is not disposable and must be washed when it is soiled. Moreover, a cloth liner of this type normally remains in use when soiled until a user arrives home and can wash it. The liner 10 has an upper section 11, a mid section 12 and a lower section 13. The upper section 11 is elongate, being wider than long and has semi-circular side edges. A flap 14 is attached to the back of the upper section 11 to form a pocket which fits over the top of the infant seat to hold the liner in place. A pair of outwardly facing generally U-shaped slits 14 are formed in the upper section 11. The lower arms 15 of each of the U-shaped slits 14 extend to the respective side edges of the liner and divide the upper section 11 from the mid section 12. The upper arms 16 of the slits, as well as the lower arms 15, accommodate the upper shoulder straps of an infant car seat when the liner is in place. Downwardly and inwardly extending curved slits 17 separate the mid-section 12 from the side portions 18 of the liner lower section 13. A single leg or crotch strap slot 19 is formed in the lower section 13.
Liners of the type shown in FIG. 1 are not disposable and generally provide an optimum fit of a relatively few of the many various types and sizes of infant seats that are presently available.
Therefore, a need exists for an improved limited life or disposable infant seat liner for infant car seats and more particularly for infant seat liners of the type having a pair of shoulder straps and at least one leg strap, the improved infant seat liner being directed towards overcoming these and other disadvantages of the prior art.